Not sure if ill or not

[imahawki]

I noticed two days ago that one of my 5 rosy tetras just got really bloated. There is no sign of illness on the scales or any other sign of illness (i.e. behavioral) but when I look at the fish head on, he is probably 2-3x wider than the other tetras of similar overall size. I say he, but have no clue what sex it is. Basically the fish looks and acts healthy except for the bloating. Any ideas?

 

[dskidmore]

Hard to say without a picture, but it could be something simple as constipation. Try feeding him/her peas. Pregnancy is usually gradual bloating, not all at once. It could also be dropsey, which should be treated with antibiotics, but try the peas first, as the antibiotics will throw your system out of wack.

 

[Zagz]

I don't believe tetras are live bearers which would rule out pregnancy. Try feeding the frozen peas, skinned and cut up to bite size. If that doesn't work, treat for dropsy or bloat, as recommended. If possible QT the affected fish. Dropsy can occur with bloating before the scales stick out. What are your water parameters? How long has the tank been set up?

 

[imahawki]

Well, thanks for all the advice. I lost the fish overnight and he never really improved. All my other fish look healthy but I had no means to QT the fish so I'll have to keep my eyes open.

 

[dskidmore]

We are sorry for your loss.

It is so hard to treat fish diseases because we often don't detect them until the fish is very ill indeed.

 

[imahawki]

I agree. I just noticed out of the blue how bloated he/she was. The only thing I felt bad about was that I'm sure it was miserable the last couple days. I hope none of the other fish get sick.

 

[dskidmore]

I have not often seen dropsey spread throughout the tank. It is an internal infection, so it can spread, but usually doesn't.

 

[imahawki]

That's good news assuming that's what it was.